11/07/2025
Nerves act at the body's communication network, transmitting signals throughout the body to control movement, sensation and other functions.
Types of Nerves:
1. Sensory Nerves - These carry information from sensory receptors (like those in your skin, eyes, ears, etc.) to the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord). This allows you to perceive touch, taste, smell, sight and hearing.
2. Motor Nerves - Carry signals from the brain and spinal cord to muscles and glands, causing them to contract or secrete substances. This enables movement, as well as other functions like digestion and hormone release.
3. Spinal Nerves - Originate from the spinal cord and branch out to the rest of the body, connecting various muscles to organs. They are responsible for both sensory and motor functions, and some control automatic body functions like heart rate and breathing.
4. Cranial Nerves - These 12 pairs of nerves originate directly from the brain and are primarily responsible for functions in the head and neck, such as sight, smell, taste, hearing, facial expressions, and tongue movement.
5. Autonomic Nerves - These are part of the peripheral nervous system and regulate involuntary functions like heart rate, digestion, and breathing. They are further divided into the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems, which have opposing effects to maintain balance within the body.
Functions
- Movement: Motor nerves control the muscles that allow for walking, running and other physical activities.
- Sensation: Sensory nerves allow you to experience the world through your senses - touch, taste, smell, sight, and hearing.
- Automatic Body Functions: Nerves regulate heart rate, breathing, digestion and other involuntary processes.
- Cognitive Functions: The nervous system is involved in thinking, learning, memory, and emotions.
- Coordination and Balance: The nervous system coordinates muscle movements and maintains balance.
- Response to Stress: The nervous system triggers the body's stress response, including the release of hormones and increased heart rate.
- Wound Healing: The nervous system plays a role in the body's healing process.
Nerve pain, also known as neuropathic pain, is caused by damage or disease affecting the somatosensory nervous system. It differs from typical pain like that from a burn or injury and can be caused by problems with nerve signals in the central or peripheral nervous systems. Symptoms can include tingling, numbness, burning, or sharp, shooting pain.
